The
Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued an urgent
warning about scammers impersonating the regulator through fraudulent text
messages, aiming to steal personal and financial information from unsuspecting
victims.
ASIC Warns of Text Message
Scams Using Fraudulent Method
The
scammers are using “alpha tags” – alphanumeric sender identification
labels that display “ASIC” instead of a phone number as the message
sender, creating an illusion of legitimacy that has already targeted numerous
Australians.
“ASIC
does not communicate using text messages for any official business,” the
regulator emphasized in its warning. This includes requests for personal
details, business name renewals, confirmation of misconduct reports, investment
assistance, or fee payments.
The
deceptive practice comes amid a rising wave of government impersonation scams
that have become increasingly sophisticated in recent months. Alpha tags, while
legitimate tools for organizations to identify themselves in text
communications, provide scammers with a powerful method to build false trust
with potential victims.
When people
see “ASIC” as the sender rather than an unknown number, they’re more likely to
engage with the message. However, this false sense of security is exactly what
scammers are banking on.
Each week ASIC
blocks approximately 130 suspicious websites, having removed over 10,000 in
total. Scammers are therefore trying other tactics, directly impersonating
trusted public institutions.
Unveiling Smishing
The
practice in question is
known as “smishing,” a term for SMS phishing. This issue is especially
widespread in the cryptocurrency sector, where users of major exchanges receive
fake messages urging them to take action on their accounts. Interestingly,
these fraudulent texts can blend in with
legitimate ones sent by the exchanges, as phones may display the sender as
“Binance” or “Coinbase.”
Per the
“Scam Prevention Survey” conducted by Finance Magnates and FXStreet,
close to 22% of participants reported that SMS scams are among the most
frequent they encounter, outpacing scams seen on X.
How to Protect Yourself?
The
regulator advises Australians to be vigilant and follow several protective
measures. These include independently verifying any message sender before
responding, avoiding clicking on links in unsolicited messages, enabling
multi-factor authentication on accounts, and staying informed about emerging
scam tactics.
For those
who believe they’ve been targeted, ASIC recommends immediate action: stop all
communication with the scammer, contact financial institutions to halt any
transactions, and report the incident to both the impersonated organization and
Scamwatch.
The
Australian Communications and Media Authority is developing an SMS Sender ID
Register to help protect alpha tags from impersonation, though this solution
isn’t expected to launch until December 15, 2025.
Until then,
ASIC urges Australians to remember the “stop, check, protect”
approach when receiving suspicious messages – don’t engage, verify
independently, and take protective action if something feels wrong.
Recovery Scam
This marks
yet another instance of individuals attempting to impersonate ASIC, following
a mid-March warning from the Australian regulator. At that time, ASIC
cautioned that fraudsters posing as agency officials were contacting potential
victims and requesting “to provide a payment to enable funds or assets to be
released.”
The alert
was issued after reports surfaced of consumers receiving emails and phone calls
from scammers pretending to be regulatory officials. ASIC classified these
schemes as “recovery scams.”
“ASIC will
never ask for a payment in any currency to enable funds or assets to be
released,” the regulator added. “ASIC will also not require or accept payments
in digital or crypto assets (including stablecoins), whether that is to or from
your crypto asset wallet or to an account at a digital asset exchange.”
While ASIC
has only recently addressed this wave of impersonation attempts, the Cyprus
Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has
been tackling a similar problem for years.
CySEC has
repeatedly warned the public about individuals falsely claiming to represent
its staff. In many cases, these impostors target vulnerable consumers on
platforms like Trustpilot, offering to recover funds from defunct services in
exchange for upfront payments.
The
Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued an urgent
warning about scammers impersonating the regulator through fraudulent text
messages, aiming to steal personal and financial information from unsuspecting
victims.
ASIC Warns of Text Message
Scams Using Fraudulent Method
The
scammers are using “alpha tags” – alphanumeric sender identification
labels that display “ASIC” instead of a phone number as the message
sender, creating an illusion of legitimacy that has already targeted numerous
Australians.
“ASIC
does not communicate using text messages for any official business,” the
regulator emphasized in its warning. This includes requests for personal
details, business name renewals, confirmation of misconduct reports, investment
assistance, or fee payments.
The
deceptive practice comes amid a rising wave of government impersonation scams
that have become increasingly sophisticated in recent months. Alpha tags, while
legitimate tools for organizations to identify themselves in text
communications, provide scammers with a powerful method to build false trust
with potential victims.
When people
see “ASIC” as the sender rather than an unknown number, they’re more likely to
engage with the message. However, this false sense of security is exactly what
scammers are banking on.
Each week ASIC
blocks approximately 130 suspicious websites, having removed over 10,000 in
total. Scammers are therefore trying other tactics, directly impersonating
trusted public institutions.
Unveiling Smishing
The
practice in question is
known as “smishing,” a term for SMS phishing. This issue is especially
widespread in the cryptocurrency sector, where users of major exchanges receive
fake messages urging them to take action on their accounts. Interestingly,
these fraudulent texts can blend in with
legitimate ones sent by the exchanges, as phones may display the sender as
“Binance” or “Coinbase.”
Per the
“Scam Prevention Survey” conducted by Finance Magnates and FXStreet,
close to 22% of participants reported that SMS scams are among the most
frequent they encounter, outpacing scams seen on X.
How to Protect Yourself?
The
regulator advises Australians to be vigilant and follow several protective
measures. These include independently verifying any message sender before
responding, avoiding clicking on links in unsolicited messages, enabling
multi-factor authentication on accounts, and staying informed about emerging
scam tactics.
For those
who believe they’ve been targeted, ASIC recommends immediate action: stop all
communication with the scammer, contact financial institutions to halt any
transactions, and report the incident to both the impersonated organization and
Scamwatch.
The
Australian Communications and Media Authority is developing an SMS Sender ID
Register to help protect alpha tags from impersonation, though this solution
isn’t expected to launch until December 15, 2025.
Until then,
ASIC urges Australians to remember the “stop, check, protect”
approach when receiving suspicious messages – don’t engage, verify
independently, and take protective action if something feels wrong.
Recovery Scam
This marks
yet another instance of individuals attempting to impersonate ASIC, following
a mid-March warning from the Australian regulator. At that time, ASIC
cautioned that fraudsters posing as agency officials were contacting potential
victims and requesting “to provide a payment to enable funds or assets to be
released.”
The alert
was issued after reports surfaced of consumers receiving emails and phone calls
from scammers pretending to be regulatory officials. ASIC classified these
schemes as “recovery scams.”
“ASIC will
never ask for a payment in any currency to enable funds or assets to be
released,” the regulator added. “ASIC will also not require or accept payments
in digital or crypto assets (including stablecoins), whether that is to or from
your crypto asset wallet or to an account at a digital asset exchange.”
While ASIC
has only recently addressed this wave of impersonation attempts, the Cyprus
Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has
been tackling a similar problem for years.
CySEC has
repeatedly warned the public about individuals falsely claiming to represent
its staff. In many cases, these impostors target vulnerable consumers on
platforms like Trustpilot, offering to recover funds from defunct services in
exchange for upfront payments.
This post is originally published on FINANCEMAGNATES.
